Formal Introduction

It is at the close of the fourth semester of my university career that I write this first entry. This being said, I cannot think of a more appropriate moment to begin a blog. With half of my four years of semi-freedom still remaining, a small sum money in my pocket, my health and a whole lot of unchanneled ambition, the world lies at my feet and I will admit, I am full of excitement for the prospects that lay before me. I am also excited for the people around me who I have watched grow up over the years. For example, one of my friends has just become a mother, while another is on her way to becoming a vet, and yet another is entering a post-graduate course at Sheridan. It has only just struck me recently how far we have come. It is with this realization that I begin this blog as I hope that other people will be inspired by my experiences and aspirations in life, as others have inspired me.

Personally, I never would have thought ten years ago that I would have taken the path I ultimately chose. During my public school, and even my high school years, I was an aspiring artist and dreamed of animating for a living. This dream, however, changed upon reencountering the culture of Japan, from which point I developed a deep love of the language and culture. Ironically, up to that point I had never been interested in languages due to the nine painful years of French language indoctrination and one unsuccessful attempt at Spanish. Thankfully, the theory of 'once bitten, twice shy' did not come into play, and I daringly embarked on a one year exchange to Japan, subsequently passing up my high school prom (shock and horror!), as well as a life with which I had grown far too comfortable. The year overseas is one I will never forget as it opened my eyes to the faults in my character thanks to the somewhat cutting but well-meant words of my host mother, and not so much the acceptance of another culture as the understanding that comes with living with another family. During my time in Japan, I had to learn to communicate with people using the sticks and pebbles of the language, and numerous times I know I hurt people. However, this was balanced out by the plethora of funny and unforgettable moments interspersed among the difficult ones.

Returning to Canada was a shock I shall never forget. The most distressing experience was that I had "forgotten" my own language. Having used only Japanese for ten months, my brain had adjusted to not being understood and was thus overwhelmed when an intelligent conversation lasting more than five minutes was expected of me. (In Japan, a five minute conversation in English would take me 20 minutes to express in Japanese!) I was also overwhelmed by the fact that no one seemed to understand me in Canada either - in fact, I had far better communication with the friends and "family" I had left behind in Japan because they had been with me through even step of my experience. Shock soon faded to acceptance however, and I eventually adjusted back into Canadian life, a change that had the reverse effect as I no longer had anything in common with anyone in Japan. I was one body torn between two worlds.

...but as everybody knows, with time comes healing. The step from dependency in Newmarket (and to a certain extent, in Japan as well as I was living with a family) to complete freedom in London soon quelled the sadness that was building up within me, and allowed me to explore myself, as well as the possible options for my future. While I never had had any real ambitions during high school, my mind suddenly was flooded with great ideas such as becoming a translator, starting up a business, working with international students, teaching E.S.L. and giving to the community rather than endlessly taking from it for my own selfish purposes. I can now happily say that I feel more confident and fulfilled as a person for helping out as a Cultural Liaison Manager (international coordinator type person for all of those not in the know!) at my university, and indulging my passion for other cultures by assisting those new to our country.

This August, I plan to once again return to Japan for a full year of study at Gunma Women's University near Tokyo. I am curious to know how this experience will differ from the last and how I will look back upon the "me" writing this diary entry at the moment. I hope that I can make this blog an informative and interactive experience for anyone and everyone, acquaintance or not, interested what I am doing so please feel free to post on the message board - I completely encourage open dialog!

Enjoy your time here and good luck wherever your travels may take you. :-)